Discussions

I have talked to a few gardeners lately and three have mentioned that the lily beetle is now in Brandon, in their yards. Two lived in the west end and one is close to the Sportsplex.  
 
Do you know what you are looking for, if the lily beetle is in your garden, eating your lilies?  
 
They are bright bright red and super easy to spot on your lilies.  
 
Kill every one you find. Squish them. Be quick as they are quick too.

I tried to post a photo of one but can’t seem to do it. Keep getting an error message.  
I found just one in my garden two weeks ago and dispatched it very quickly. Nothing since thank goodness.  
Be careful when you trade plants with others. Beetles can be in the soil on the backs of leaves or hiding almost anywhere, even in or on other plants you dig to give to others from your garden if you have them. They could even be in lilies from green houses or other garden centres. I spoke to a few garden centres today and no one knows anything about them and would not know what to do even if they recognized one.  
I have a supply of End All 2 that I will use if I see any more. I mix it double strength. It is a contact pyrethone spray so you need to spray the bug for it to work. There are no chemicals available in Canada for use on the beetle but if you can get your hands on any insecticide with carbaryl as the main ingredient that works very well. I also have a stockpile of Sevin ( a carbaryl insecticide) if I need to bring out the big guns.  
You also need to check for eggs laid on the underside of the lily leaves in a straight line. They are bright orange and easy to see. Just wipe them off and That’s that for those ones.  
The larvae are the really disgusting stage of this pest. They are voracious eaters and cover themselves with their own excrement as a deterrent to predators. When picking these off I suggest you use gloves. It is a messy job.  
 
Here is a link to more information on the beetle and its control. http://www.manitobalilies.ca/Lily%20Beetle.htm  
 
Edited by DSPMA, 2018-05-26 22:23:50

I added a photo. Ew.

kill every last one you find. These will destroy your lily clumps. I have them in Valleyview area, large infestation last year. Scott's Bug B Gone (pyrethrin) concentrate kills them, but don't dilute it. Spray directly on the beetles. A couple beetles can destroy a whole garden of lilies once they reproduce about a million times over the summer. I have all types of lilies and they seem to prefer asiatic lilies but will move on to oriental once they destroy those.  
 
Edited by thevoiceofreason, 2018-05-30 16:30:04